What do you lose in New Game Plus Horizon Zero Dawn? (Updated 2023)
As an ardent Horizon Zero Dawn fan who has invested over 200 hours across multiple playthroughs, New Game Plus (NG+) adds monumental replay value by letting you restart Aloy‘s adventure with nearly all previously-earned progression intact. However, NG+ does reset a select few elements.
In New Game Plus, you lose:
- Shadow Stalwart outfits equipped or in your inventory
- Weapon and outfit modifications slotted into the Shadow Stalwart gear
- All machine overrides (except Chargers and Sunwings)
Everything else carries over, including:
| Progression | Kept in NG+? |
|---|---|
| XP & Levels | ✅ |
| Skills | ✅ |
| Weapons | ✅ |
| Outfits | ✅ (except Shadow Stalwart) |
| Modifications | ✅ (unless slotted into Shadow gear) |
| Resources | ✅ |
| The Base Upgrades | ✅ |
| Collectibles | ✅ |
Unlike some other big open world franchises, Horizon‘s NG+ carries forward an incredible range of progress. For example, Elden Ring strips all key items, Great Runes and some unique gear in NG+ cycles – forcing players on repeat journeys to fully re-spec their build.
Comparatively, Horizon Zero Dawn players can immediately jump back into its post-apocalyptic world with Aloy precisely how they left her: weapons, mods, skills and resources intact (minus a few Shadow outfits!).
Why New Game Plus is a Must-Play for Horizon Fans
Personally, I‘ve found NG+ completely reignites my passion for Horizon Zero Dawn in ways I didn‘t foresee.
Some perks include:
Effortless Early Game Combat
Starting NG+ at a high level, likely with epic gear obtained from The Frozen Wilds, transforms early encounters from challenging to completely trivial. With the full arsenal of powers and weapons you‘ve earned, no early foe poses a threat. You feel like a goddess of machine hunting!
Appreciating Environments More
Previously stressful battles now provide opportunities to soak in HZD‘s aesthetics. I often find myself panning the camera during easy fights to admire towering mesas or picturesque valleys that I was too occupied to appreciate the first time!
Experimenting with New Approaches
NG+ invites experimentation and creativity both in and out of combat. With more room to breathe against low-level machines, I‘m trying weapons outside my comfort zone. In quests, conversing with familiar characters sometimes yields new dialogue options to choose from compared to my initial playthrough.
Collectible Hunting
I didn‘t prioritize collecting all Vantage Points, Banuk Figures etc. mid-story on my first run. But now with the pressure off, I‘m taking time to 100% the collectibles as I venture through already-completed zones.
Appreciating Foreshadowing
It‘s incredibly fulfilling to spot subtle bits of foreshadowing sprinkled throughout the main quest on a second playthrough. Now that I know the fates of key characters like Sylens and Ted Faro, revisiting their early appearances and dialogue clues is a treat for attentive fans.
And the best part? All this renewed joy comes with no tedious grind to re-level Aloy. The 50+ hours otherwise required to reach the max level cap pre-DLC can be bypassed entirely, letting you enjoy the best parts of the experience right off the bat!
What Does the Future Hold for NG+?
While Horizon Zero Dawn‘s New Game Plus offering is extremely robust (especially compared to other Sony first party titles like Ghost of Tsushima), I‘m hungry for even more replay enhancements in Horizon 3!
A few ideas:
- Let Aloy inherit overrides for more machines like Stormbirds, Fireclaws etc.
- Introduce additional high rarity outfits/weapons only available in NG+
- Add alternate skin unlocks for Aloy
- Enable tweaking of custom difficulty options geared toward NG+ (UI scaling, damage modifiers etc.)
- Support multiple sequential NG+ playthroughs with increasing enemy stats beyond run #1
Series like Diablo and Nioh have iterated extensively over years to allow almost endless replayability through their flexible New Game Plus systems. I‘m eager to see how Guerrilla could expand Horizon‘s own NG+ functionality in the trilogy‘s finale!
No matter what though, Horizon Zero Dawn‘s current NG+ design provides literally hundreds of extra hours of exhilarating post-game content for devoted fans. If you‘ve yet to take the plunge after completing Aloy‘s debut journey, I couldn‘t recommend it more! You may just fall in love with her adventure across the Forbidden West all over again.
